Green Cars

The greenest vehicle may be the one you already own. Interested in getting the most from your ride?

Top Ten Gasoline Saving Tips

Take
advantage of alternate forms of transportation.

Stocking
up at the grocery store may not be feasible when you’re on your bike, but for
quick trips for just a few items consider walking, riding your bike or taking
the bus. Not driving your car saves the most gasoline!

Carpool

Have
coworkers in the same area? Another family in the neighborhood headed to the
same soccer practice? Consider creating a carpool. Make a flyer to hang in the
break room or to pass out at football practice. You may be surprised at the
time and money you save by sharing rides!

Continue Reading Top Ten Gasoline Saving Tips ...

Have a diesel vehicle that you want to make into a green car? Consider biodiesel.

Biodiesel

Bio-fuels,
biodiesel in particular, are made from biological ingredients such
as plant oils or animal fats rather than fossil fuels.Most
bio-diesel is sold as a blend. For example, B20 is 20% bio-diesel and
80% diesel.

Bio-diesel
is 10 times less toxic than table salt

Diesel
vehicles need little or no modification to use bio-diesel

Bio-diesel
lubricates the engine, decreasing engine wear and tare

Bio-diesel
releases fewer emissions, is a renewable source of energy and is biodegradable

Learn more about Biodiesel

Electric Cars

Electric
cars are green cars powered by a battery or batteries which run an electric
motor. Some advantages for electric cars are:

Energy
Efficient – gasoline vehicles convert 17-21% of stored energy to
power at the wheels whereas electric cars convert 59–62% of the
electrical energy from the grid to power at the wheels, which makes for much greener driving

There
are numerous hybrid vehicles in production, they are reasonably
priced, and you may even qualify for a tax break!

Continue your hybrid vehicle research here.

Hydrogen Cars

Hydrogen
cars run via a hydrogen fuel cell, which converts hydrogen to
electricity, producing heat and water, which is emitted from the car
as steam. Although several hydrogen cars are in concept phase, there
are only a few in production – the Chevy Equinox, the BMW 745h and
the Honda FCX, which is currently available for lease in California.
The barriers to green technology hydrogen cars are:

Hydrogen
fuel is produced either via electrolysis, which often uses
electricity produced by coal, or by extracting it from natural gas,
which produces carbon emissions, which is is the opposite of
reducing your carbon footprint

Hydrogen
fuel is very flammable (Hindenburg, anyone?) and storage is a
concern for this alternative fuel

When
it gets warm, hydrogen fuel expands, creating the need for a
ventilated gas tank … and if your hydrogen car sits somewhere warm
for too long, you may not have any hydrogen fuel left

A
fleet of hydrogen cars would necessitate new infrastructure for
hydrogen fuel filling stations, which could cost up to $500 Billion